Best Esports Betting Sites in Germany (2026)

Editorially verified · Updated 15 October 2026 · Affiliate links, no paid placement

The honest version of this page is shorter than most. In Germany there is exactly one kind of esports betting site available to you: an offshore one. Every bookmaker on the German whitelist (Betway, Tipico, Bwin, Bet365, Interwetten) holds a licence that does not cover esports, so none of them will take a bet on CS2, League of Legends, Dota 2 or Valorant from a German customer. That leaves the offshore books, and of those we send German readers to one: Thunderpick. Below is why, what you give up by betting offshore, and how the crypto deposit actually works. For the law itself, read is esports betting legal in Germany.

Our Pick for German Esports Bettors: Thunderpick

Thunderpick is a Curaçao-licensed sportsbook that started as an esports book and still behaves like one. The markets are the reason it is here: CS2, League of Legends, Dota 2 and Valorant are priced through the calendar, not only around the majors, with map handicaps, round totals and player props on the big CS2 events, and it prices smaller titles that licensed books never touch. Its terms restrict players from the Netherlands, the United States and sanctioned countries. Germany is not on that list.

What it is not: it is not licensed in Germany. The site and support are in English. Deposits and withdrawals are crypto (Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT and a handful of others), and identity verification is required before your first withdrawal. We have not put a star rating on it because we do not rate operators we have not taken all the way through deposit and withdrawal ourselves.

The GGL-Licensed Books, and Why None of Them Is on This List

If you already hold one of these accounts, keep it for football. None of them can take your esports bet.

How Esports Betting Works in Germany

Germany’s regulator is the Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL) in Halle. It runs the official whitelist of operators allowed to advertise to German players, take SEPA and PayPal from German banks and handle the 5.3% wager tax. The sports-betting catalogue under the 2021 treaty lists football, tennis and the other traditional sports as licensed categories and does not list esports. That single fact explains the table above. The full legal picture, including what German enforcement is and is not aimed at, is in our legal guide.

What the German Licence Gives You, and What You Give Up Offshore

Read the middle two rows twice. If something goes wrong offshore there is no German authority to complain to, and if you have put yourself on OASIS an offshore book will not know.

The Most Popular Esports in Germany

Most German esports volume sits on five titles, and Thunderpick prices all five year-round.

• CS2: the biggest market by a distance, with the two Cologne events on the calendar every year. Map handicaps, round totals and pistol-round props. See our CS2 betting in Germany guide for the market breakdown and calendar.
• League of Legends: LEC splits and Worlds, with first-blood and first-tower props beyond the match winner.
• Dota 2: the Majors and The International, where outright and series prices move fastest.
• Valorant: VCT EMEA, with live coverage growing each season.
• EA Sports FC: the FC Pro windows, handy if you already follow the football side.

Payments: Crypto, and How to Handle It

The single biggest practical difference from a licensed book is the cashier. There is no SEPA, PayPal, Giropay or Sofort. If you have never held crypto, this is the part to get right first.

1. Open an account with a European exchange or set up a self-custody wallet, and buy a small amount of Bitcoin or USDT. Keep the first amount small.
2. Open your Thunderpick account and complete identity verification straight away, not when you want to withdraw.
3. In the cashier, pick the coin, copy the deposit address, and send from your wallet. Deposits usually clear within the hour.
4. Withdrawals go back to a wallet address you control. Expect a verification step the first time.
5. Set yourself a weekly limit before the first bet. There is no German deposit cap here.

Why Only One Esports Site?

Because a list padded with books that cannot take the bet is worse than one recommendation stated plainly. Every licensed German book fails the first test for esports, which is having the market at all. Of the offshore books, Thunderpick has the deepest esports coverage that accepts German customers under its own terms, so it is our one esports pick. Betway sits beside it for a different job: it holds a German GGL licence, so if you also bet on football or other sports and want German protections, it is the regulated option. It cannot take your esports bet.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best esports betting site for German players?

Thunderpick. It is an esports-first book with CS2, LoL, Dota 2 and Valorant markets all year, and German customers are accepted under its terms. It is crypto-only and sits outside the German licence, so read the trade-offs above before you deposit.

Does the GGL licence cover esports betting?

No. The German sports-betting catalogue under the GlüStV 2021 does not list esports as a permitted category, so no German-licensed bookmaker offers esports markets to German customers.

Can I bet on esports at Betway, Tipico or Bet365 from Germany?

No. All three hold German licences and none of them offers esports markets to German customers.

Can I use a Curaçao-licensed esports site from Germany?

The sites accept German customers. You lose German consumer protection, OASIS coverage and the GGL complaints route, and German enforcement is aimed at operators rather than bettors. Go in knowing the trade-off.

How do I deposit if I have never used crypto?

Buy a small amount of Bitcoin or USDT on a European exchange, send it to the deposit address in the Thunderpick cashier, and keep the first deposit small until you have done one withdrawal. The steps are in the payments section above.

Does Thunderpick accept players from Germany?

Yes. Thunderpick’s terms restrict players from the Netherlands, the United States and sanctioned countries, and Germany is not on that list. It is not licensed in Germany, so German player protections do not apply.

Can I use PayPal or SEPA for esports betting in Germany?

Not for esports. Thunderpick takes crypto only, and the German-licensed books that take PayPal and SEPA do not offer esports markets.

Which esports can I bet on from Germany?

CS2 by a distance, then League of Legends, Dota 2, Valorant and EA Sports FC. Thunderpick prices all five year-round.

Related Reading

• Is esports betting legal in Germany?: the full legal explainer.
• CS2 betting in Germany: the game-specific guide.
• All esports betting sites: the full comparison hub.

Written by: Cian O’Rourke, Esports Betting Analyst at eGamingHQ.
Reviewed by: the eGaming HQ editorial team.